Many NBA players have made unreal amounts of money playing basketball. But only a handful have been able to use that money to make more after their playing careers were over. Shaquille O’Neal and Magic Johnson are some of those few who managed to create wealth after they retired. The Big Aristotle nowadays dabbles in podcasts where he had actor and comedian Marlon Wayans as a guest recently.
When discussing comedy and improvisation on The Big Podcast with Shaq, Wayans mentioned he had some good jokes about O’Neal and Johnson. Hearing this, the 4-time champion asked him to say what he had in his mind about Magic Johnson.
I just said he had the good AIDS. What AIDS you get where you live 50 years? I want those AIDS. He’s become a billionaire with AIDS. Give me those AIDS. What kind of AIDS is this, financial AIDS? [starts at 23:32]
Marlon Wayans said
Wayans reiterated after saying this that he loves Magic Johnson and that his mouth always gets him in trouble. But Shaquille O’Neal could not stop laughing hysterically. The former dominating big man who himself loves to troll people every now and then told Marlon Wayans that the joke was very good. It was original and threw Johnson’s past health problems with a comic twist.
The 52-year-old actor was obviously enamored by the fact that Magic Johnson had built a billion-dollar empire around him. Something that not many in sports or the entertainment industry have managed to achieve.
Magic Johnson and his billion-dollar empire
Magic Johnson played in the NBA for 13 seasons. In that time, he earned around $40 million from the Los Angeles Lakers and a bit more from endorsements. But as per Forbes, his net worth is $1.2 billion, becoming the fourth athlete to earn or surpass the billion-dollar mark.
What might seem surprising that he managed to turn that ‘meagre for the NBA’ amount into a billion dollars is due to his business acumen. He learnt a lot from former Los Angeles Lakers owner Dr. Jerry Buss and invested in real estate, Starbucks franchises, movie theatres and most notably healthcare. His majority investment in life insurance company EquiTrust makes up for the bulk of that billion.
But he has steadily increased his foothold over the years. Recently, he became minority stake holders in the Washington Commanders, Los Angeles Dodgers, Los Angeles Sparks and soccer club LAFC. All of these investments should increase his net worth over the years.
